Regional/Cultural Day
Thomas Jefferson's Birthday
Observed at Monticello, his home in Charlottesville, Virginia. Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence, founded the University of Virginia, owned over 600 enslaved people, and had a long-term relationship with Sally Hemings, one of those enslaved people. The birthday ceremony at Monticello now includes descendants of both the Jefferson and Hemings families, which is the most honest way to observe it.